When John D’Luhy ’55 first came to Trinity, he thought he would follow in his father’s footsteps and become a lawyer, but one man set him on a new path. Sensing D’Luhy’s facility for the subject, Assistant Professor of Economics John Candelet persuaded him to focus on economics and continue his education at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. D’Luhy received his M.B.A. from Wharton in 1959.

After leaving graduate school, D’Luhy entered the two-year training program at Merrill Lynch and began his career in investment banking. He went on to work at Lazard Frères and serve as a senior partner at R.W. Pressprich Investment Bankers. He is now a private investor and he is listed in
Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who in the World, and Who’s Who in Finance and Industry.

When he was just getting started on Wall Street, D’Luhy joined the Blue Hill Troupe, a singing group in the city. There, he met his future wife, Gale Rainsford, a mezzo-soprano. Gale’s father, Mark Rainsford, had attended Trinity with the Class of 1942. Rainsford left the College to become an officer in the Army Air Force, but he was killed on his way to his first duty station. Several decades after they met and married, D’Luhy and his wife endowed a reading room in the Raether Library and Information and Technology Center in her father’s memory.

While in the Blue Hill Troupe, D’Luhy was befriended by a retired admiral who had been a naval aviator. He invited D’Luhy to join the Naval War College Foundation as a founder member. The foundation supports the academic needs of the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island. The college is a premier military service school that educates mid-grade and senior officers from the United States Armed Forces and from the militaries of countries around the world.

He is currently a trustee of the Naval War College and recently retired as chairman of the board of trustees and as treasurer and chairman of the finance committee. Students at the school study politics, economics, and regional history in addition to military operations and strategy. D’Luhy says, “The college takes a military officer and creates an ambassador. Yes, it’s called the Naval War College, but it really is a peace institution, because their first concern is maintaining the peace, safety, and security of this country, its allies, and the world.”

Men and women who have served in the Navy can reestablish their connection to the service through the foundation. D’Luhy says, “For those graduates of Trinity who went into the Navy, the foundation offers an opportunity to reacquaint themselves with the service, attend special programs, and reconnect with former classmates and fellow officers. I would love it if all the guys in my class came back and joined the foundation to get together not only as classmates but also as fellow Navy officers.”